Call In The Tooth Fairy

Yesterday morning began with a beautiful new dusting of snow and a great small star moment. I was beginning my first class with our normal circle time where the students write their names on the board and we ask each other "How are you?" At one point, one little boy, named Disel, reared back his arm to give me a strong high five when he accidentally elbowed the boy sitting next to him, named Kevin, in the jaw and one of Kevin's loose teeth exploded gracefully out of his mouth and flew about a good two feet away from him on the floor. It was spectacular. Luckily, it was a loose tooth! Kevin was so happy! He went to show his grandpa while the rest of the little ones shared with me how many loose teeth they had! Kevin came back into the room and I wrote "Yeah! I lost my tooth today!" on a sticker. He loved it. He also showed his immense appreciation to Disel the rest of the class period. He kept hugging Disel and shaking his hand. It was precious!

Yesterday afternoon, I taught a final lesson 20 open door class for my oldest group of students. Laura also filmed it in order to observe me teach with the parents in the room. The young women did such a great job presenting what they had learned in front of their families. I got a little teary when I gave out their awards and talked about how they have grown over the course of the class. I will continue to be their teacher for their next class, though, and I am super excited about that.

Tonight, after classes, I went out for tea with Cindy and Marie. When I got back to my place, Cindy sent me a text to tell me that the Oscars were being played on CCTV. I just got to watch the last 20 minutes. It was in English, but it was fun seeing the movie stars names in Chinese!

Young Small Stars Love

I woke up to snow! I knew it was cold last night! We only got a few inches and now it is all slush on the roads or ice on the sidewalks!

My favorite part of my day today was in my second small star class of the morning. This class is a healthily excited class, but they have a hard time between transitions. I was asking the students to make a line behind me when the craziness began. One little boy, Andy, accidentally pushed down a little girl named Lucy. He was just trying to get to the front of the line, but he hadn't meant to hurt her at all. Lucy was just fine and wasn't even upset. However, another boy, JJ, who is a bit sweet on Lucy took it as a threat. He started going nuts running around the room screaming about how no one pushes his girl down in Chinese. Andy stood there just shocked, and Lucy was very blase about it. I eventually cornered JJ between a few little tables, and held him by the shoulders and told him that it was all okay, and that Lucy was just fine, and he needed to calm down. He looked up at me so sweetly and said, "Ok," and for a moment, I thought I had his attention. After about a twenty second pause, JJ started going crazy again, and didn't really calm down until I had dismissed the class. I was able to tell JJ's mom about what happened, and she thought it was pretty great that he was defending the Lucy's honor, even though she wasn't too crazy about how he disrupted the class. It was one of those moments when the child is just too cute, and you want to laugh, which I did, but you need to keep it together a bit to show them that their actions are not the most appropriate.

So stay tuned for more Small Stars Love Triangle gossip...

Observation Feedback with the Big Boss

I was nervous walking to work early this morning, because I was going in for an observation feedback session with the big boss of EF Kids and Teens Centers in Beijing. He had observed one of my classes before Spring Festival and he had some time to talk to us about our classes. I felt pretty good about it, because nothing he said was a surprise to me. I knew what I had to work on, and we had a good laugh at my attempt to teach personal pronouns using puppets which just didn't work on so many levels! He gave me a lot of ideas and tips, more so than I have ever gotten here before. He also gave me some positive feedback that made me feel proud of my work here, too.

We had a crazy long staff meeting today. We are going to start implementing reading stories in our small star classes in about a week. I am so excited about it. EF has created these books about preschool Roddy having little adventures like hanging up clothes to dry outside and catching butterflies. I think it is one of the best things I've seen been implemented by EF this whole year.

I'm also really excited, because I learned this past week that Saturday, March 12 is Plant a Tree Day throughout all of China. I had asked Laura if I could do a special program that evening at the school, without the families having to pay extra for it, about environmental fun and awareness. Laura asked if there was anyone interested in helping me, and almost everyone volunteered to help, which was so amazing! I'm really excited about it. Then, someone suggested we have a whole month dedicated to community service and everyone got even more excited. It'll be fun to see what happens!

I had a great evening, too. I taught a fun class where we are learning about writing sentences using a first conditional structure. One of the book activities was to have the students write a ransom note! So weird. We pretended that Nick, the students' other teacher, had kidnapped Bartholomew and the students wrote their threats about demanding him back in first conditional sentences. After I had dismissed the class, the students stuck around to talk about Justin Beiber with me. It was pretty cute.

I had a late dinner with Cindy and Joyce and we talked all the funny things that have happened at work over the last week, and we got to catch up with Cindy about her trip to Hong Kong!

Namaste

I've been feeling a little homesick lately. The pollution has just been really gross the last few days. The sun was glowing hazy red this afternoon. People are wearing face masks and EF and the U.S. Embassy have suggested that people stay in as much as possible until the pollution level gets a little more normal. Not so fun. I do feel bad complaining about it though. It's just rude to talk about my friends' country like that, and also I know I am lucky to be in this country right now compared to some other countries who are really in pain. Still, it makes me feel sad.

I have been waiting for a package from my Mom, and I stopped in at work today and it was there waiting for me. I was so happy! It was like a little bit of home was sent my way right when I needed it!

I also have been looking into joining a yoga studio in Beijing. I've looked at the different guides and websites for awhile, but I've just never gone for it. Today, I decided to go for it. I was taking a lot of yoga classes at home before I left for Beijing, and I have missed it. I took a taxi to a studio called Yoga Yard. I was trying to figure out how to get there by subway, but it looked so confusing. The taxi driver dropped me off at a restaurant called "The Olive" and I just started walking around trying to find a sign for the Yoga Yard. I was praying that I didn't have to cross the obnoxiously busy street to get to the other side. Luckily, I turned a corner and started to see a few posters about the studio. An observant guard noticed me staring back and forth between my copy of The Beijinger's Guide and the posters and he motioned me to follow him. He lead me around another corner and pointed to an elevator that took me up to the studio. I've been pretty lucky with people helping me get to where I want to go here.

The studio is pretty small. There is a little front room, two small studio rooms, and both a men's and women's locker rooms. I took 1-2 Level class this evening. There was about six people in the class, a mix of foreigners and locals. The instructor spoke in English and then Chinese. I read that there are instructors that will speak Chinese and then English, and some that speak either English or Chinese. There was a nice water fixture in the room so we could hear water running nicely. The class was 90 minutes and it was definitely at an appropriate level for me. It felt really good to be back in a yoga class and I hope to go maybe once or week or so in the future.

A few people in the lobby helped direct me to the subway after class. I just had to turn a corner and walk forward for about 15 minutes. One man warned me that when I get to the golden arches of McDonalds I should see that station momentarily! I got back to my neighborhood okay with only a few uncomfortable moments of wielding my yoga mat into unsuspecting bystanders on the subway!

Namaste, everyone!

Microphones and ESL Teachers

Last night, we all went out to celebrate our boss's Laura's birthday. We had dinner at a nice restaurant near our school after work. We ordered a fish and they brought it out to us on a net to approve of it before they cooked it. It was first time I had seen them do that. Maybe I'm always in the bathroom during that moment! It startled me. Anyway... we still had a delicious dinner.

Then, we moved on to a night of KTV. Give these ESL teachers microphones and you know you're in for a good time! We were given a huge space ship room and lots of room to dance and sing around. It was a really fun night out, and a great way to end a long teaching weekend. Today, it wasn't so pretty in the office... but we have some good stories.

Amazing Race

I was in bed last night reading when I noticed that the fireworks had all suddenly stopped at 1 AM. It was like everyone agreed to end at 1 AM! I was happy to be able to get some sleep without so many bombs bursting in air!

This morning, most of the firework debris had been cleaned up by all the sanitation workers. The did an amazing job, because last night had layers and layers of debris piled up on the streets and sidewalks. Miles told us today that he was checking the U.S. Embassy's air quality level for Beijing last night and it got to 300! 230 is the danger level and 300 can be deadly for the young, elderly and the sick. Yikes! I'm going to appreciate Oregon air so much more in the future. You can look up the scary Beijing air quality statistics from the U.S. Embassy: http://twitter.com/beijingair

I had an early meeting today to meet our school's new Customer Manager boss. Her name is Becky and she is from China and has worked at another school for four years. Our previous CM has been promoted to be in charge of three of EF's Beijing schools.

I taught one elementary class this evening. It was a special testing day for the students during the first hour, and in the second hour, they completed an "Amazing Race" where I gave them clues about numerous tourist sights around the world and they would have to look online to answer a question before they were given the next clue. We have a bank of computers for students to use in the main hallway, and a few parents got in on the action, but mostly they enjoyed the group of boys trying to figure out that one of the clues was about the Great Wall! They were getting a bit of a laugh over that. I was just happy they were working together, floundering or not!

Happy Lantern Festival!

Today was Lantern Festival Day! It's the last day of the Spring Festival celebration. People place lanterns outside of their homes and businesses, often with riddles written on them. People can try to figure out the riddles as they pass by. Today is also the last day people can legally set off fireworks.

Cindy's family invited me to have lunch with them to celebrate Lantern Festival and Cindy's grandmother's birthday. They thought I should end the festival with the people I began it with! We went to a restaurant and I got to meet a lot of the Sun family. In their family, when they have a meal together, parents and children sit together. We had a delicious meal. I sat next to one of Cindy's cousins who now lives in Vancouver, B.C., but she always comes home to celebrate the New Year with her family. It was fun to talk to her. Cindy's family is really nice and loud and the room was full of laughter with a bit of bickering and teasing. Families might look different and speak in different languages, but they still feel the same! Cindy brought up infamous wedding story where I insulted a room full of people on National Day. I can now tell when she's telling it in Chinese. Everyone had a good laugh about that.

Cindy and I had to leave during cake time, but not before Mrs. Sun had me join her in the Birthday song in English! It was really special to share that meal with them on a special day.

Tonight at work, I competed with fireworks outside the window while teaching my small star classes. The fireworks won out most of the time. They were just insane. My last class group and I watched as our school's neighbors threw fireworks out of their windows! It was pretty insane! At the end of the last class, the students were busy tracing the letter "G" on a worksheet while I went around helping them spell their names. One particularly loud firework went off and I yelped a bit. The children thought that was pretty funny, but they did learn a new adjective... "scared." "Teacher Coco is scared!" I'm never going to live that down, either!

I went to the gym tonight after work and watched an impressive fireworks show from the treadmill. It took me double the amount of time to walk home from the gym tonight. Partly, because I would stop and watch the fireworks and partly because I was trying to avoid getting caught on fire! It was just madness out there! The ground is just littered with debris. I wouldn't want to be cleaning all that up in the morning. Once I made it safely inside my complexes courtyard, I sat outside and watched a bit more of the show before going in to warm up.

Thank you, Beijing, for letting me join in our your Spring Festival this year. It's going to be a fortnight I'll never forget!

Happy Post Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! I attempted to write a post yesterday, but my Internet was being so slow!

Valentine's Day is not a big thing in China. I only saw one display of Valentine's style flowers at a grocery store yesterday. China has it's own Valentine's Day in September. It was actually refreshing to not be bombarded with awful jewelry commercials and big store displays.

I didn't celebrate Valentine's Day at work, but I did bring in doughnuts to celebrate Oregon's birthday! I drew an awful map of the state with landmarks and put it up above the doughnuts. It cracked me up at least.

After classes last night, I went to have tea and some snacks with Cindy and Ray, one of the customer relations staff members to celebrate our singleness. We had a good time.

A Good Day for a Snow Day

I woke up to another layer of snow this morning. I really wanted it to be a snow day, but I had some stars to teach this morning! It's usually super quiet in my apartment complex on Sunday mornings when I leave for work around 8. My favorite sight today was all of the security/ staff shoveling and sweeping the walkways around our apartment building in their long black coats. I followed one pair of footprints all the way to work.

It was pretty quiet at work today. We had pretty low attendance due to the snow and people still visiting relatives for the Spring Festival. I told one of my older classes that is just all girls about the real story of St. Valentine... well the Emperor Claudius version!

Tonight, as I walked to the gym, I noticed that all the roads are pretty clear by the sidewalks are snowy and icy. It looks like we won't be getting any more snow this week.

My First Magical Beijing Snow

I woke up to the sound of shovels scrapping snow off the walkway in my complex. It must have snowed about three to four inches last night. We had snow flurries on and off all day until about 6:00 this evening. It was really beautiful and the streets were much quieter. Tonight, I noticed that some of the streets have been plowed as I walked to the gym after work. Walking home I noticed that everything is getting icy. I've heard that it is suppose to turn to ice by tomorrow morning and then we should be getting some more snow tomorrow, and then it should start warming back up on Saturday.

Everyone at work was feeling a little giddy over the snow! It was really fun catching people staring out the window at the flurries. Since our teachers' office and most of our classrooms do not have windows, it was a bit of an event when someone walked past one and shouted out "It's still snowing!"

I had two small star classes this evening and both classes only had four students in them. I took a tally and only one little girl told me that she made a snowperson!

Back to Reality

A few more Old Summer Palace pictures...

Today was definitely a back to reality day! It began with an early wake up to get to my Chinese class. The subway wasn't as crowded as usual, which was nice, but there were a lot of people with huge bags and suitcases making their way back home... or at least to their Beijing home. There was only four of us in class so I got to practice a lot and ask lots of questions. The class is really too advanced for me, but I try. My poor instructor will ask me a question and I'll just say, "I have no idea about what you are talking about!" I'm just trying to figure out how to count still!

I went into work today for just four hours this afternoon. It was nice to see everyone and I got a lot of lesson planning done. A lot of our normal classes have been canceled for this week, so it's given us a bit of a breather and the opportunity to plan ahead a bit.

I went to to the gym after work. It was the first day it was open again after the festival, and it was pretty quiet. The gym has very large windows and I got to watch a great fireworks show as I was on the treadmill. That was a first!

Tonight, I had to say good-bye to Pepper. Marie and King picked her up tonight. I'll miss having her around, but I am glad my apartment will smell a little less rabbit-y.

I have my fingers crossed because we are on the radar of getting some PRECIPITATION! We've seriously lacked moisture in the rain since the great rain of October! I'm hoping for a little snow!

The Old Summer Palace

Well, I survived the crazy night of fireworks!

Today, I went to visit the Old Summer Palace with my friend Stephanie and her parents. The Old Summer Palace was a place where the Emperor and his homeslices could hang out during the hot Summer months and enjoy the beautiful houses, gardens, and an entire building just meant for birds. However, in 1860 during the Second Opium War, the British and French armies destroyed the place, but they left a lot of the bronze structures, because they weren't so into those! Now, a lot of the ruins look like pictures or video I have seen in Ancient Greece and Rome. One of my favorite spots was a big bust of the writer Victor Hugo. He openly complained about the armies being robbers. He's kind of a rock star around here!

Stephanie's parents only walked through the ruins with us, and then walked home. Stephanie's dad, Mr. Yuan was a police officer stationed at the park before he retired, so we all got in free. Her parents were so warm to me, even though I could really only say "Hello, how are you?" It was a pleasure to meet them.

Stephanie and I had fun touring the ruins. One section of the ruins is a maze! The emperor used to sit out late on hot summer nights in the pergola and watch all the government officials rush through the maze. He would bestow money on the first one that reached him. I liked that story. Now, tourists can try walking the maze (it wasn't too hard to figure out and I'm horrific at directions) and take pictures at the pergola.

Then, we wandered around the temple fair. This temple fair was so much more relaxed compared to the one I went to on Friday. It was the last day of the fair, so people were pretty relaxed, and all the sellers were just trying to get rid of their goods. I got a few little treasures and had some delicious snacks.

I really appreciated Stephanie and her family showing me this beautiful park. I can't wait to go back in the Spring!

Well, that's it for my Spring Festival vacation. It was wonderful to have seven days off in a row and to explore Beijing a little bit with my friends here, and also have some time to relax. I feel refreshed. Back to Roddy and his friends tomorrow...

Captain's Log: 9 Months as of yesterday! I've spent a whole school year in Beijing now!

Po Woo- The Fifth Day

Today is the fifth day of the New Year, or Spring Festival. Today is the day where no one visits anyone and is suppose to stay at home and welcome the gods of wealth. If anyone does visit anyone then it will bring bad luck to both parties. Tomorrow, people can go back and visit their family and friends again.

Today, I stayed pretty close to home and didn't visit with anyone except for on the phone, so hopefully the gods of wealth will shine on me this new year. Actually, I'd just be happy with some more good job opportunities!

However, it may have been a quiet day for me and Pepper in the little studio, but outside is crazy with fireworks! They started at 7:30 AM and have not stopped! My Mom can attest, she heard them over our Skype conversation. Tonight, it has been so bad that I was scared to leave my apartment, worried that I would be blown up by fireworks. Fireworks have been hitting my windows! It's not so fun anymore. My Chinese friends say we have another week of this until the Lantern Festival day on the 14th. It's going to be a long week for my nerves.

A Lovely Day at the New China Science and Technology Museum

I spent a lovely Sunday at the New China Science and Technology Museum today with Sue, Nick and Evelina. The museum is located in the Olympic Park, and there were so many people going to the Olympic Green today at 9:30 in the morning. I was impressed. Why isn't everyone at home making breakfast? Anyway...

I was expecting we would check it out for a few hours and then grab some lunch, but we ended up being there for seven hours! We helped close the museum down. There was so many amazing exhibit halls. The first one was about ancient and older inventions from China. I had been led to believe in my college classes that the printing press was a Western invention, but the Chinese were doing that for hundreds of years before the Western world probably thought of it! It was the first time I have ever been in another country's science museum and it was interesting reading everything from a Chinese perspective and reading about how proud they are about their country's contributions to Science. There was an awesome display about the importance of conserving water. It talked about how China's water supply could be very low in ten years, and how we can all help conserve water.

The United States gave the museum a gift of a huge Californian Redwood wood cookie to celebrate the museum's grand opening in 2008. The massive tree had died previously. Nick and I pondered a long time about how it journeyed over here!

Tonight, I have been enjoying another night of fireworks. I'm kind of ready for the show to be over. Someone in my complex was throwing fireworks out of their window. Classy...

P.S. Happy Birthdays Uncle Leo and Jean! Shēng rì kuài lè

Great Wall, Take 2!

Day 3 of my Spring Festival started with an early wake up at 5:30 to get ready to go to the Great Wall in Mutianyu. I was suppose to meet friends and some co-workers from all the EF schools at the Beijing 2 school, but I had been given incorrect directions. I walked for about 30 minutes the wrong way getting off at the subway. Eventually, with some phone calls, I was able to make it to the bus we had rented for most of the day. It took only about an hour and twenty minutes to get there via our private bus. When I took the public bus, it took about two and a half hours.

I spent most of the day with Laura, James, Stephanie, and David, a teacher from another Kids and Teens school who has worked with Laura in the past. We were a good little group, and we each took a ton of pictures. It was the first time Laura, James, and Stephanie had been to this section of the Wall, so it was fun watching them see it for the first time. It was cold in the morning when I left my studio, but I was plenty warm by the time I made it to the top to start the Great Wall walk! I had to take off my scarf, gloves and hat on the way up, but I prefer the cold over the hot when climbing up to the top.

We wandered up on the top of the wall for a few hours, which was really nice. I felt like I got to notice more details the second time, and since it wasn't so hot, I think I enjoyed it more. I also brought Bartholomew along with me to take pictures of him, which was really fun. Bartholomew started a few chats with some of the English speaking foreigners we passed, and lots of smiles and hand gestures with a few Chinese families! He can be a good ice breaker sometimes.

Stephanie and I decided to skip the sled ride back down, and just walked down and took lots of pictures. I realized the stairs up are so much more rustic than the steps down. Maybe they think people are more likely to hurt themselves up on the way down compared to the down. Stephanie and I found a special sculpture garden that had some interesting and beautiful rock sculptures.

Luckily, this time I had packed a lunch and didn't have to eat at the gross Subway station there. We got back on the bus around two. When we arrived back to the city I went with Laura and another teacher to a Temple Fair near Beijing 2. I learned that there are many, many Temple Fairs located around the city for the New Year. It was crazy crowded! You could barely get to where you were going, and had to just follow a big group to make any moment through the fair. We didn't stay too long, but got to see a lot of food and craft boots.

It was a really great day, with the exception of being a bit lost, and late to the bus!

Xīnnián kuàilè! Happy New Year!

Happy New Year Everyone! Hope the Year of the Rabbit has started well for all of you!

I've had a wonderful start to the New Year! Yesterday afternoon, Cindy and her parents picked me up to drive to the hotel that Mr. Sun manages. It's actually in the same area as the hot springs spa area I visited during Autumn Festival. No one had booked any of the rooms, so the owners invite Mr. Sun to allow his family and friends to stay there for Spring Festival.

It's a beautiful building where all the rooms face a courtyard full of green plants. Right at the entrance is a person made lake that is currently frozen over. The hotel even has brought in deer to hang out around the lake.

The hotel has it's own big KTV room where we all sang songs. Even Jan, the only employee, besides Mr. Sun who was there, got in on the action. We had an awesome dinner that Mrs. Sun prepared. She was very happy to use the hotel's big kitchen. We waited around for midnight while singing some more and I "attempted" to help Mrs. Sun make dumplings, but she just kept nodding her head sadly at me as I attempted to press together the sides of the dumplings before they are steamed! Hey... they are a lot smaller than peroigees!

At midnight, Jan set off some fireworks and we watched from the lake all the numerous firework shows in the sky. Beijing people are serious about their fireworks. It seriously felt like we were being bombed. Then, Mrs. Sun yelled at us that it was time to eat dumplings! I had thought the dumplings were for the day, but I guess it is very important to eat dumplings as soon as you can at the start of the New Year! We ate the best dumplings that I have ever had. Mrs. Sun even made me vegetarian ones even though she told me that the pork would bring me good luck.

Today, was a pretty lazy day. I got to hang out with the deer and Mrs. Sun kept on feeding me! We ate a special sticky rice cake for breakfast that brings you good luck if you eat it on New Years day. Mrs. Sun made lunch while Cindy and I watched a movie and started to clean up the hotel rooms we used that night. We all had lunch together, and than Cindy and I headed over to the hot springs spa. It was much colder to be outside in a swimsuit this time compared to the lovely September weather the last time I went. I got to have a really nice massage there by a licensed massage therapist this time, so that was really relaxing.

Mr. and Mrs. Sun picked us up with the car and drove me back to my apartment around six-ish. I was walking through the gate when one of the gardeners at my apartment complex was walking by. He looked at me, flipped a switch to turn on all of the complexes lights, and then turned back at me and gave me a thumbs up. Instantly, I started to hear so many fireworks! It was a bit of a magical moment. I went back to my apartment to drop off my bag, feed a starving Pepper, and turn on my heat, and then headed out to find a grocery store to buy some snacks to share with friends tomorrow during our Great Wall adventure.

It was so kind of the Sun family to invite me over for a real traditional Chinese New Year. I'll always be grateful for the experience. I think I'm always going to celebrate Chinese New Year from now on wherever I am...

Hope all you dear readers, have a beautiful and prosperous year of the Rabbit!

Pepper: Entering the Year of the Rabbit

I have a special little buddy hanging out with me this next week. Her name is Pepper and she is a Marie and King's little rabbit. I'm pet sitting while they go and visit King's family for Spring Festival. The poor thing was traumatized from the very loud walk from their apartment complex to mine. Marie brought her over right before we had to go to work today. I've been letting her hop around the apartment tonight as I watched TV and she seems to be adjusting quite well to her new environment. I'll be entering the year of the rabbit with a rabbit visitor. That has to bring me good luck!

Even though Tuesday is my normal day off, they made us all come in for four hours today since we get the next seven days off. I actually got a lot of planning done which will help future me out! My boss made us all walk down to the bank to take out enough money for the next week since they won't be adding more money into the machines for the next week or so! Can you imagine if the U.S. started doing that? I walked over to the gym tonight after work, but I guess they decided to close a day earlier than what the sign had read. I went to do some grocery shopping, and noticed how much quieter Beijing has gotten in the last few days, at least in my neighborhood. Usually the grocery store is very crowded in the evenings, but tonight it was pretty quiet.

I'm stoked to have seven days off work in a row! I'm really excited to not wear my work uniform for seven days! Tomorrow night is New Year's Eve!

I received a list of predictions for all the Chinese astrological signs for the year of the rabbit. I'm a Dog. I guess I have some big choices this year... Enjoy!

Rat

For you, romance is the focus. Either your current relationship will take on a reinvigorated headiness or, rat singletons, you will find your pulse racing in the arms of Mr or Miss Right. Carry or wear something purple at all times but keep it hidden.

Ox

This year, you will make important discoveries, acquire new skills and deepen your knowledge. Keep a lavender pouch in your pocket whenever you travel by powered vehicle - basically anything other than a push bike, rowing boat or skateboard.

Tiger

This is your year to relax, take time to reflect, replenish your energy, go to a spa, eat a Flake, tackle that pile of good books. Hang a 'hundred blessing' picture in your living room where guests will see it when they visit.

Rabbit

Take a long hard look at your physical activities. Are you doing enough? Are you doing too much? Do you really enjoy the gym? Or would you prefer to join some kind of team sport, like football or basketball? Keep an item that reminds you of your childhood in a drawer or cupboard that you open most days.

Dragon

This will be a stunningly profitable year with lots of money-making opportunities but you'll have to look for them in the strangest of places. Attend more social functions and parties.

Snake

Not a good year to make business investments. If you must, approach with extreme caution. Place an object of blue glass somewhere near a window, ideally where it can diffract some sunlight.

Horse

Watch out for tricksters and scam artists, as there will be plenty trying to con you this year. Put a laughing Buddha statue on your desk at work.

Sheep

This is your year for charitable donations and/or compassionate acts and volunteering. Hang something that's been hollowed out and dried (coconut, gourd, etc) at the hinge side of your front door.

Monkey

This will be very rewarding year for you if you are in the PR business or a high-profile job. If your job is not so public, you will earn the respect from an uncooperative colleague. Place the smallest denomination coin from your native land head-up next to your bed.

Rooster

Your valuables are prone to be damaged or even stolen this year, so take particular care of them. Place a jar of dessicated ginseng in the bottom of your wardrobe.

Dog

You have some big life decisions to make, probably that you've been avoiding. This is the year to make them - all of them. Keep something gold on the left-hand side of your desk at work.

Pig

Watch your health, as there are more chances of you falling ill when tired. Review your diet and make sure you sleep enough. Place a piece of quartz (any colour) in the most south-easterly corner of your home.